| Jenya slept peacefully when he was home, dreaming normal dreams about the past, present, and his hopes for the future. The bed he shared with Kelnai was covered with down-filled quilts, that he was forced to grudgingly admit to Saerifahl were extremely comfortable. The small woman was an artist who made money these days by selling her work in Varikelle, and had somehow acquired these quilts as a gift for Kelnai. She neither looked nor acted like it, but Saerifahl had more than enough coin to have her own home built - and paint on her own walls. Yet she and her psychotic cat stayed, watching Shorin when Jenya and Kelnai could not. Saerifahl still told Shorin stories about the day she saw him, a mass of slightly bloodied limbs and golden hair cradled in Kelnai's arms. The boy was still small for his age, but chances were that he would be taller than his father. Saerifahl had been peddling her art in the port city of Arsibaeth and saw the ruby-haired Mage walk by, haunted by worry and moving as if she feared attack around every turn of the streets. A ship in port was set to sail around Shordisalen, straight to the docks a mile away from Varikelle, and there was that unique, worried woman trying to gain passage with nothing to barter. Saerifahl had just sold the last painting so her pockets were full of coins. She bought passage for the woman and whom she assumed was her child - only to be corrected vehemently by the boy later - and decided to follow. Kelnai had asked her why several times, but Saerifahl couldn't really offer an explanation. She tended towards rash and impulsive behavior, and probably only had followed those two because they had interesting hair. Not many Magi or golden-haired children passed through the streets of Arsibaeth, and there was nothing really tying her to the mainland so she decided to make sure they made it safely to wherever it was they were going. When Kelnai asked her these days why she stayed, the only explanation she could offer was "Because." Now the babysitter stood with her arms crossed, watching Jenya grin and murmur in his sleep. The thought crept into her mind that it would be a nice challenge to paint Jenya's form, to attempt to translate all that light that danced around him into oil pigments. She let out a small chuckle - he didn't look so deadly when he was unconscious - and was in the process of turning to tell Kelnai that Jenya still slept and would not be present for dinner when a tiny, ornate dirk flew past her face. She let out a small squeak as she spun to stare at Jenya. "You could have said something while you just stood there," Jenya rubbed his eyes as he grumbled. "You missed!" Saerifahl waved her finger at Jenya and laughed. "Did I?" Jenya rubbed the bridge of his nose, then gesture for the sniggering woman to do the same. Saerifahl gasped indignantly as blood clung to her fingertips, stomping away without telling Jenya that dinner was ready. Not that it was necessary; the smell of cooked meat had roused the Sun-Chylde, not the sound of Saerifahl snickering. He set his bare feet on the floor - at least he had managed to get his boots off before collapsing into unconsciousness, but nothing else - as he threw the quilts back. His feet made light padding sounds as he walked across the wooden floors, through the main hall that connected almost every room in the house. As he entered the dining room, he was greeted mostly by smiles. Shorin let a tiny smirk slip before recovering his stoicism. Jenya grinned brightly in Kelnai's direction, but it was more than just her smile he reacted to. He knew now that his son had actually missed him. His grin faded when his gaze met Saerifahl's glare. She held tissues to the bridge of her nose, overreacting as usual. Jenya sighed and took his seat at the head of the table, immensely grateful that several plates of food had been set for him. Kelnai must have known that once he recovered from exhaustion, he would be starved. The Taer'shal camps were not known for exquisite cuisine, and if forced to dine at one, a man would quickly learn to be thankful that the food was edible at all. As he shoveled food into his mouth, he noticed that there was no more pain in his hand. He nodded to Kelnai appreciatively. Soon everyone began eating; even the insane animal that Saerifahl claimed was just adjusting. Comfortable silence stretched on, broken only by a belching contest between Shorin and Saerifahl, and the occasional smacking sounds as Jenya devoured the food set before him. The boy and his sitter acted almost like old friends, which made both Jenya and Kelnai smile. Shorin needed at least one friend in this world, so Jenya forgave Saerifahl for painting on the walls, letting her cat sleep on the furniture and committing general mischief. A pounding racket, reverberating through the halls, broke his thoughts of comfort and home. His eyes met Kelnai's. "Stay here." He walked out of the dining room, retrieving his blade from where it had been set in main hall as he headed for the front door. No windows could give him a clear view of the immediate outside, but on the same hand no one on the outside could see inside clearly. He pulled the thick door open, holding the blade in the hand hidden behind the door. His eyes widened as his gaze fell onto the forms of the two women standing in front of his home. "Sweet reeling stars!" The sword fell from his hand as he moved to catch Lalreth before she could fall. "We had to find you, but we had some trouble." Sha'en's voice was hoarse, her short hair matted with dirt and leaves. From her appearance, she and Lalreth had slept on the ground more often than not for several months. Jenya managed to slip his left arm around Lalreth's back, the other behind her knees and carry her inside, gesturing for Sha'en to follow. He heard her shut the door behind her as he moved through the main hall into one of the entertaining rooms, closest to the dining room. "Kelnai," he shouted. "We've got company. Bring towels and clothes, and uh..." Warm sticky fluid was starting to cover crook of his left arm. "Bandages!" Jenya looked to Sha'en for some sort of explanation. "Later, please?" Her clothes - not the Tracker combat uniform he had usually seen her in - were in tatters. Her usually soft hazel eyes were wide with some sort of fear. Jenya nodded as he turned his attention back to Lalreth. "Later," he grunted as he set Lalreth on one of the couches, laying her on her stomach. A thin bloodied tunic that had once been a yellowish colour appeared as if it had been shredded. Jenya ripped the cloth, grimacing at the rips in Lalreth's flesh that leaked blood onto his furniture. This could be fixed, he hoped… |